John Stemberger is not a name the average Floridian is familiar with. But Stemberger, one of the leaders of the effort to ban gay marriage and abortion in Florida, is a highly sought endorsement in conservative circles.

On Tuesday Stemberger announced he would be endorsing Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp in the Republican primary for Attorney General.

Stemberger's announcement is notable because of his well known antipathy for Governor Charlie Crist. Kottkamp has attempted to distance himself from Crist since the governor left the Republican Party, and that effort seems to be working.

No one should confuse Kottkamp and Crist, said Stemberger in a written statement.

"Lt. Gov. Kottkamp is a life-long conservative we can trust," Stemberger said. "He has a consistent and proud history of voting pro-life and leading on these issues that none of the other candidates for Attorney General can match."

It will be interesting to see if Kottkamp's two Republican primary opponents, former state legislator Holly Benson and Tampa area prosecutor Pam Bondi, try to tie Kottkamp to Crist before the Aug. 24 primary election.

But Kottkamp, who did have a conservative reputation as a Fort Myers state legislator before Crist picked him as his lieutenant governor, appears to be building a firewall of conservative support to protect himself from those claims.